Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1887-12-11
sUNDAY~.....DEcEMBER II, 1887.


The following sentence-italics and
all--is from a leading editorial in the
Petersburg bader-4ppoai:
"Nmay be accepted nor that a State
can rcpwdi0tc tie contracts IN spite OF
the prohibition of the United States Con-
stitution."
There is in the Constitution of the
United States no section or clause which
was intended by the trainers Of that in
strumoDt so to be construed as to enable
or authorize any department Of the Fed
ernl Government to compel q State to
pay its debts. Ii was with difficulty that
several OF the Colonies or States could
be induced to comeinto the Union. II the
fathers of the republic had understood
the clause providing that no State should
pass any law impairing the obligation of
contracts as applying TO the debts Of the
States themselves, there would never
have been such q Federal Union
as We have to-day. The words,
ms used in the Constitution, were
intended to mean that no State should
pass any law impalring the obligation of
contracts between persons. We suppose
that it never occurred to the trainers of
that instrument that the clause under
consideration would or could be made to
cover the debts of the States themselves.
We claim no more for Virginia in this
respect than the United States Govern
ment claims for itself We claim no more
for Virginia than the most insignificant
nation in the world claims for itself. We
claim no more for Virginia than is fully
accorded TO her in the eleventh amend
ment to the Federal Constitution. What
else than a guarantee of absolute immu-
mty from the operation of the clause we
are considering could the fathers of the
republic have understood the eleventh
amendment TO be ? BEAD it once more
"The judicial power OF the United !
States shall not be construed TO extend |
10 any suit in law or equity commenced |
or prosecuted against one of the United |
States 10y citizens OF another State, or by |
citizens or subjects of any foreign |
State.
That amendment was not intended to !
countenance or encourage reputation.
1t was adopted for the purpose Of pro-
hibiting suits Of any sort to be COM
menced against any State in any Federal
court A State could never be sued in
her own courts without her consent.
Repudiation may be wrong, but the
Federal courts have nothing to do with
righting this wrong. England is MS
much opposed to reputation as the
United States, and has just as much
right to institute a suit against Virginia
in the Court OF Queens Bench as UNCLE
SAM has to entertain one against her in
his courts.
The constitutional feature has now
been eliminated from the debt problem.
The Democratic party put itself on re-
cord in 1888 as fighting for principle,
not for dollars and cents. The debt
question, the Lynchburg convention de-
clared, had become question OF States
rights. 1t had indeed become ques-
ton involving the very existence of the
States themselves The battle lasted for
years, but victory perched at last upon
the banners of the Commonwealth. Let
us all rejoice in this glorious result. The
bondholders will get more money under
the last decision of the Supreme Court
of the United States than they would or
could have forced Virginia to pay under
q decision adverse TO her.